Beyond the movement: how Nepal's civil society organizations evolve following nonviolent resistance

Abstract Successful nonviolent resistance movements lead to broader and longer-lasting civic action, strengthening democracies. Our analysis investigates this assumption by examining the lessons local civil society organizations (CSOs) learn from nonviolent resistance movements, hypothesizing both a learning effect and an indirect adaptation effect. Regarding the learning effect, it is expected that the internalization of successful mobilization strategies will lead to changes in organizational behavior. Conversely, it is presumed that profound political, social, and legal changes have the most significant impact on other organizations, leading to changes in organizational institutions. We conducted in-depth interviews with CSOs in three districts in Nepal. Our findings support an effect of the changes in opportunity structures from successful nonviolent resistance on organizational behavior and institutions. However, we find limited evidence for learning processes within CSOs. Overall, our research contributes to understanding how organizations adapt following a successful nonviolent resistance during democratic transition.